A graduate of the JKU’s Master's degree program in Industrial Mathematics, Ms. Perchtold is currently working on her doctorate degree at the Institute of Stochastics. She is currently conducting research on stochastic climate modeling with the hopes that it will contribute to more sustainability, particularly to benefit the city of Linz. Ms. Perchtold was presented with the ZONTA Award in part because of her commitment to the JKU’s "FIT- Frauen in die Technik" ("Women in Technology") program aimed at providing school girls and young women with information and encouragement to earn an academic degree in science. After previous stays abroad in China and South Africa, she would like to complete another research semester abroad but only when it is once again safe to travel.

Alberta Bonanni, Vice-Rector for Research, Gender and Diversity, remarked: "The JKU not only supports initiatives to increase the proportion of women students in engineering and science; in addition, we want to draw more public attention to the outstanding achievements by female students and researchers at the JKU."

The ZONTA Award, for example, is presented in recognition of outstanding achievements by women at the JKU’s Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences. Endowed with € 2,500 in prize money, the award is sponsored by the ZONTA Club of Linz and presented to a particularly engaged and accomplished female student at the JKU Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences who, in addition to extraordinary academic achievements, also demonstrates a very high level of social commitment, and has experience studying abroad.